Soulstorm Choronicles - Broken Wings
by GratuitousLurking
Summary: One of three records detailing the Malar Heresy Incident, this record follows the tale of Seraph Soulstorm, an Adeptus Sorita who, while not strong in faith, may be the only one not blind enough to see her fate. - Rated M for Graphic Violence, Suggestive Sexual Themes, and Religious Subtext
1. Chapter 1 - The Beginning

_"So, Sis, what are your plans after you leave home?"_

_"Isn't that a question a little early for now?" Seraph asked, her smile widening as she looked back to the flaming red hair of her sister, slowly following behind her to the town again._

_Kel simply giggled, turning around to stick her tongue out. "Only a few years away, and I'd hate for you to get stuck on this dustbowl with me!"_

_"Hey!" Seraph called back, giggling as she moves to catch up with her sister, keeping pace until the two reached the well parked behind the settlement dwellings._

_A dull, loud rumbling echos in the distance, strange whining and yelling casting through the desert terrain and back to the two sisters. Seraph slowly turned as she squinted her eyes, Kel stopping right before her. Slowly, the objects started to draw closer and closer, sparkling black plates starting to shine in the heated sun. As they draw even closer, alarms start to roar in the town, signalling people to head to safety.  
_

_"Shit, raiders," Seraph muttered under her breath. "Kel, we need to get inside, get out of here-"_

_Before she could finish her sentence, a loud scream of angry engines called out as a black, menacing, angular skiff rocketed around the buildings near them._

_The next few moments were a blur. Kelinas quickly bodychecked her sister, and Seraph felt the stone of the well pressing into her legs. Scrabbling for handholds, Seraph felt the cross chain around her sister's neck grip into her hand, but the tension was lost, as she fell backwards, down and down into the dark..._

* * *

"Rise, Sister Seraph. Rise, and allow your new wings to fly."

Ceramite plates scrape against each other while she moves from her crouched position, hisses of her internal systems assisting the defensive armor to move as easily as she does. Seraph held the chainsword level before her, eyes closed tight and focusing at the system now connected to her interface, power quickly starting to flood around in her equipment. Unhelmeted head bowed, it was a few moments before the soft scream of engines graced her ears. Flames licked from the edges at the metal wings of the newest addition to her personal arsenal, the Seraphium weapons platform roaring to escape the simulated gravity. Weightlessness took her, unerring grace keeping her leveled as she was lifted by the arcane technology, holding her aloft with the gentleness of a lover. Quiet whistling filled the air as she spun her blade around, before bringing it to rest before her horizontally, head rising up and her bright violet eyes open.

"As a member of the Orders Militant, and one of the Emperor's favored daughters, I give my life to the safety and protection to all in the Imperium of Mankind," Seraph recited simply, her eyes focused onto the figure before her.

The Cannoness Superior, Alekxandria Blaskas, gave a curt nod, the whitened hair a stark contrast to the blackened power armor accented with orange. Her height was something most uncommon with many of the Sisters, and even with Seraph now elevated a foot from the ground they were barely in an even stare. "Then with the powers granted by me from the Emperor, and through the Holy Order of the Pandemic Rose, I grant upon you the rank of Seraphium." Drawing her power sword, the cannoness laid it across each of Seraph's plated shoulders, before also moving it to a position before her, similar to Seraph's own. "Hold your status with pride and severity, so you may better serve the Emperor and protect the safety of all his subjects from the Demon, the Mutant, and the Heretic."

As the cheers and claps of the Sisters who had come to watch her ascension echoed into the wide hall, celebrating one of their most devout and serious servants, it was all Seraph could do to avoid a shudder of unease. With the ceremonial part ending, she once again returned to her booted feet returning to the surface of the hall, her head giving a quiet bow to the Cannoness. The religious fervor would have been intoxicating to any of her other sisters, but as it stood now, Seraph only felt like wanting to be alone.

Several of her fellow Sisters would walk by her, giving various words of encouragement or congratulations, eventually the flow ending with just her and the Cannoness left. Ensuring they were alone, Blaskas paced away from Seraph, her face kept away from her.

"Sister Seraph. You are a... oddity to me. Years you have been with us, learned our ways and our creeds, and I have seen very few who match your skill and power in combat. And yet, time and time again, I see you never speak your bows to the Emperor, or outright find ways to escape the daily rituals. All this time and yet no change of heart..." Blaskas states, still facing away from the much-smaller Soritas.

"Mistress Superior, is it so hard to not care for the safety of the Imperium above all else?" Seraph added simply, tilting her head to one side and trying to keep herself impassive.

Blaskas turned to one side, a very small smile on her face. "And that, Seraph, is why I am so curious about what plans the Emperor has for you. Keep your beliefs secret, but your drive strong, and I can see your strength getting you far." Slowly, she walked past her. "Enjoy your evening, Seraph. I expect you will swiftly be moved to assignment soon."

Quietly, Seraph watched the woman leave, leaving her alone in the Chapel's large great atrium. All around her, the Sorita's devotion to the great God-Emperor was along the walls and around her, the stern face of his visage staring at her from all sides. Living saints stood in stoney vigils, and even several of the important members of the Pandemic Rose were either listed as martyrs from the Tyranic War or rewards for outstanding service or pilgrimages.

Even still, she gently looked around to ensure she was alone, before gently reaching into the collar of her armor. Gently, she pulled forth her necklace, looking down at the golden cross that used to hang around her sister's neck. Silently, she watched it, idly looking at it and yet not focused, mind lost in memories and thoughts of simpler, happier times.

After several moments of quiet reflection, she returned it back to hiding into her armor with a sigh.

"Don't worry Sis. One of these days, I'll find you..."

* * *

_It is the 41__st__ Millennium, and there is only war._

_In the Malar System, lost in the far rim of the galaxy, events are conspiring to what will eventually be known as the Malar Heresy Incident. Guarded by many of the Imperial's loyal servants, even it cannot survive from foes from within._

_Yet, there is still hope. Although her faith is not strong, her perseverance is unending, and her skepticism may yet be what is needed to defeat this specific coming storm..._


	2. Chapter 2 - Memories and Concerns

_Groaning, Seraph's fingers, sore from her climb, finally grasped the edge of the well. Wincing a little as her sore skin dig into the loose sandstone, and with her arms screaming in pain, the young woman gently dragged herself up and over the short stones before finally collapsing back onto the dusty ground she knew so well._

_Giving a weak sigh, Seraph panted for air, eyes closed as the sun beat down on her. She didn't need to open them to know what the black-shaded craft had done- she could smell burning fabric, melted stone and hear the catcalls of the carrion birds as they salvaged their next meal from the wreckage. A dry sob left Seraph as the emotions finally broke, her weary muscles aching and her mind finally gravitating to the situation at hand._

_"Well well, a drowned rat has decided to join the party eh?"_

_Her eyes jump open in fear as she stares upwards, in the pale face of a strange, tall humanoid. With a manic laugh, the creature grabs her, dragging her off the ground with a loud scream. Even as her sore, weakened body struggled, the mad man tightened his blackened, armored hands into her shoulders, dragging Seraph face to face with him. He leered at her, enjoying the smell of her fear._

_"Ah, your terror is just delicious... but that frown has got to go... How about we just carve a smile into that pretty little face instead," he hissed, unsheathing a knife from his side. The blade very slowly started to dig into her left cheek, and her panicked whimpers and attempts to jerk away from the blade seem to only give the beast even more of his sick enjoyment._

_A few seconds before the knife could cut itself into her though, a loud blast echoed somewhere out of Seraph's view, and the foul xeno's head exploded into gore, splattering Seraph with the crimson fluids and fragmented brain matter. Now devoid of his nervous control, the creature's body dropped Seraph, collapsing back upon itself slowly. Giving several loud gasps for air, Seraph quickly scooted back madly across the ground until her back ran into the stone of the well again._

_Stepping next to her came a massive, towering figure, moving near the corpse, massive weapon trained on it all the while. Standing higher than any figure she had seen before, the soft blue power armor stood out from the muddled brown and blackened smoke, a fragmented shield embossed on the shoulder nearest her as it checked its foe was dead. Behind him moved a woman, also clad in strong, heavy black armor, fragments of orange decorating it around the golden fragments and accents of her status._

_"Check the perimeter. If we got one vulture circling the carnage, ensure we don't got more," the tanklike Astartes muttered, voice heavily distorted by the vox comlink as it turned to Seraph. The woman also focused on her, bending down to grow level with her. Cybernetic augments on the woman's right eye focused onto Seraph, even as the normal, grey left focused on the violet eyes across from her._

_"Are you alright? What has happened here?"_

_Words failed Seraph as she stared at the two gods of war, confusion and terror distorting her features before words yet again reached her tongue._

_"...Where were you? Why didn't you save them... Save her..."_

* * *

**Five years. It's been five years since the Dark Eldar struck. Five years since the monsters struck at our home, murdered my family, and all the people I knew.**

**At least, according to the records. I'm sure there's other survivors. At least, that's what I keep telling myself.**

**Back in the day, my mother told me and my sister the story of the Phoenix, a creature that would raise itself from the ashes after its fiery demise. While it's a stretch, it's a small hope to cling to. Optimistic? Maybe. Heresy? Possibly. And yet... Comforting... **

* * *

"Oy! Sister Seraph! Stop moping!"

Seraph's head shot up, her violet eyes blinking bemusedly as she looks back to the voice that broke her from her musings. Stupid of her to fall asleep at the mess hall last night...

Standing across the table she had found herself using as a pillow, three other of her sisters stood, though offhand Seraph only knew the name of one of them. Leading the group, the blonde Sister Shirika smirked a little as she sees the effect of her greeting. "Geeze, least you could have done was move a cot in here," she teased a bit. "And ya didn't even change out of your armor? That must have been cramped."

Seraph groaned, stretching a kink out of her back and rubbing her eyes a bit. Hissing noises echoed in her ears as she shifted a bit, mind too asleep to ignore the usual noises of her armor. "Good morning to you too..." she mutters. "What's the rush? Usually you avoid me like Nurgle's Rot."

It was at least part-true. After the disastrous attempts to indoctrinate her, the Cannoness had done her damnest to keep Seraph and her 'odd' views of the world away from her more-impressionable pupils, which led to the nasty rumors that Seraph was getting trained to be some form of special protege. The abuse from that string of tall tales certainly hadn't helped matters for all involved, Seraph thought dryly.

"Got no choice, Blaskaz sent us after you. Apparently we're all going on duty for the same mission," Shirika explained, the Dominion giving a short shrug. "No sense wasting time when there's burning to do, eh?"

"Minus the fact that we still have no idea what this mission entails, Sister Shirika, so there's no sense to let your righteous fury rise so fast," one of the other sisters remarked, with long black hair tied in a bun on the back of her head. She crossed her arms and stared at Shirika, raising an eyebrow.

"Naturally, Cerius, you always seem to seek to ruin my fun..." Shirika muttered, looking at Cerius with a glare.

Seraph just shook her head, climbing to her feet with a sigh. "Let's just find out what this is all about, shall we?"

As the other three moved ahead of her, Seraph subconsciously felt to her cheek, making sure there was no scar, just in case her memories had lied to her.

* * *

"Cannoness Superior, I must protest," Sister Aether replied, speaking in the small atrium that served as the Cannoness Superior's office. "I can't, with all good conscious, allow for your Sisters to be near that... heretic, for that long unsupervised."

Blaskaz's face grew dark as she turned to the Celestian, her remaining grey eye narrowing and staring the white-haired woman straight into her own. "It is a Celestian's job to act as an adviser, not to make the Cannoness's mind up for her. But feel free to speak your mind, as you seem to have no restraint for such matters," she snaps, glaring at the sister.

Sighing, Sister Aether moved before her superior and offered a short bow, her head staying low as she continued to talk. "I am just... concerned. We both know that she has resisted any attempts to show her the Imperial Creeds, and yet you think it is wise to send her as an example of the Sisterhood during this venture? I should not need to remind you that it is unwise to send such a threat right into the lion's den, so to speak."

Silence followed, and Aether could almost hear the cogs working in her superior's mind. Quietly she bit her lip, brown eyes never daring to leave the floor.

"If that is how you truly feel, then... You shall be the commanding officer for them for the duration of the mission."

Sister Aether sighed, before slowly nodding her head grimly. "It shall be done then, my Lady. And if she is to start spreading her lies?"

Blaskaz grits her teeth tightly, smacking her fist into her desk. "I see no reason for you to get worked up over her knowledge of the old legends of Terra, or the failures of the Reindoctrinators! You are chasing at shadows, trying to find reasons for her unbelief to be a taint. We discussed this every time she has gone to battle for four years, and has she failed us once?!"

"But my Lady, I-..."

A loud knock at the chamber door interrupted them.

"Discussion over, Sister Aether. Your mission has been given." A note of finality left Blaskas at the end, before gently turning back to the window behind her desk. "ENTER!"


	3. Chapter 3 - Daughters of the Emperor

"ENTER!"

As Shirika pressed the door open, Seraph quietly gave a glance around the Cannoness's office idly, before focusing on the two figures that had been standing in the room- Blaskaz stood behind her desk, sunlight of Malar II's setting light filtering through the mosaic of glass that depicted one of the Imperium's living saints. To her side, stood one of the Cannoness's Celestians, and as they entered, the woman turning to glance at the crew, before staring daggers at Seraph for some reason, the brown gaze locking on her nearly instantly. Seraph quietly looked back impassively, before finally she looked back to the others.

The four sisters quietly stopped and gave a quick bow to their cannoness in turn, before returning to a position of attention before her. "We're all here now, Cannoness Superior," Shirika stated simply. "Now, what is the mission that you wish to send us on?"

Blaskaz slowly turned, her one good eye looking over her four soldiers of the Imperium. "So I see. Now then..." she mutters, turning back around to face them. "My sisters, I have received a request for assistance from an Inquisitor Derith Mignor, who as arrived on the planet of Malar III. It would appear that somewhere during the Great Heresy, a dangerous Chaos artifact was left on the planet, lost in the wilderness. The Inquisitor has had some... complications in regard to his retinue, however, and thus has asked the assistance of the Sisterhood, to track down and contain this dangerous device."

"Complications, my lady?" the girl that Seraph didn't know yet asked.

Blaskaz sighed and lowered her head. "I didn't get much information, Sister Heraph. For that reason, I wish you all to watch carefully as you move through this mission, this smells of some form of trouble."

"If I may, Superior?" Seraph piped up, raising a hand gently, "If you are suspicious of this situation, why not ask for more details, or at least delay until we can tell how he got his original force compromised?"

The Celestian quickly glared at Seraph again. "Because, Sister Seraph, we do have obligations as the Emperor's Daughters," she snapped at her, leading to Seraph glaring back.

"That's enough, Sister Aether," Blaskaz replied quickly. "Infighting will do nothing for this assignment... Anyway, as I was saying, unfortunately now that we know of the artifact's existence, we unfortunately can't let it sit. As is, we already have spotted Tau ships in the vicinity of the planet, so if we delay too much, the planet will be struck under war, allowing plenty of time for the artifact to disappear."

Quietly, Seraph nodded, only to watch Heraph to do the same hesitantly.

Cerius gently stepped forward, giving a light bow to her superior. "So, my lady, is that all? I see you have chosen everyone from various branches of your chambers..."

"Indeed, well spotted Sister Cerius," Blaskaz replied with a quiet nod. "I hope that all of your skills will be enough for the five of you to do well, and to ensure that nothing happens to each other during your operation. For the most part, though, try to hide any suspicion from the Inquisitor. It is just my personal suspicions over how he worded his request, the reasoning for his retinue's absence could be a benign reason, and he is requesting the backup because he needs it."

Quietly, the four sisters once again bowed to their superior. "Understood," they muttered quietly.

"Very well then. Sister Heraph, young as you are, you are here to learn of your path forward through the Adeptus Soritas through the observation of your elders. Do not let your observance blind your own actions, however, for danger can befall even you.

Sister Cerius of the Retributors, I trust on you to ensure suppression of our foes and defeat of our enemies during the trials ahead. May your weapons not fail you in your ordeals to come, or your enemies find you wanting.

Sister Shirika of the Dominions, your skills with closing distance and striking with righteous fury has been noted by even your superiors. Should your sisters become unable to track the enemy, I trust you to find your way and strike them down with flame and bolter.

Sister Seraph. I know you have only ascended to the rank of Seraphim yesterday, but through all your trials, your service to mankind has been a shining beacon in this darkness. I would expect no less to ensure that the rest of your Sisters are kept safe in this venture.

And finally, Sister Aether. You have been a close assistant and guide through many trials before this, and for this reason more than any I trust you as the commanding force for this trial. Your judgment must not be allowed to be blinded, but your suspicion must burn bright, in light of our evidence. I will trust that you will help lead the rest of the Daughters as much as you have guided me.

May the Emperor protect you all. Dismissed!"


End file.
